Lindsay Taillefer FREE FORM FITNESS TRAINER
Lindsay is one of Ottawa’s busiest and most popular personal trainers – and for good reason. She is one of the most engaging, kind and personable young women in the industry. Lindsay is from small town Ontario, but her popularity with clients and outstanding reputation brought her to the attention of Free Form Fitness owners, Jean-Luc and Chelsea Boisseneault who were able to recruit the young star to their facility this year. This month, we decided to head down to Free Form Fitness in Kanata to meet Lindsay and here is a little about her story and find out what has made her arguably Ottawa’s top young personal trainer. FM: What education/training do you have?
Certified Personal Trainer through The Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology, Fitness and Health Promotion Diploma, Pre and Post Natal Fitness Specialist, and Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy Assistant
FM: What do you enjoy most about training? I enjoy leaving the gym everyday knowing that I’ve made a tiny impact on someone and their journey to a healthy lifestyle. Changing bad habits is not an easy task and I love helping people reach their goals, big or small.
FM: What are the most common problems you see with clients?
The most common problems I see with clients are their lack of motivation and knowledge with strength training. I help them reach their goals with accountability - keeping track of their weight and measurements and also their strength gains. Just making an appointment for 3x a week helps the individual stay motivated, especially when they know I’m at the gym waiting for them!
FM: What are the best exercises for people to do at home?
For a full body workout people can perform dynamic exercises including walking lunges, planks, push ups and my favourite at home exercise, the lovely squat!
FM: What are a couple easy to make healthy meals you can suggest? 36 | OCTOBER 2013
Eating the right foods always seems to be a big issue with many of my clients. There’s no time to prepare, clean food doesn’t taste good, there’s too many cookies in the lunch room, I could go on. I like to tell my clients that they can always prepare their meals ahead of time if they are often in a rush. I take every Sunday afternoon to cook all my meats for the entire week! Everything including veggies and carbs can be made ahead of time. When I’m training my breakfast consists of two egg whites and two eggs with oatmeal plus some veggies. My next meal is 2-3 hours after my first which is a protein such as chicken or fish, sweet potato and a veggie. My next 3 meals after that are very similar. Those who are trying to eat a healthy and balanced diet while at work can turn to greens and a lean protein with every meal. Adding complex carbs such as quinoa, brown rice and sweet potato instead of breads and processed carbs will help the tummy feel full and satisfied longer.